The cold wind of the twelfth lunar month was like a needle tempered with ice, drilling into the seams of his bones along his collar. He shuddered suddenly, but when he opened his eyes, he was squinted by the dazzling sunlight. A fishy smell mixed with river mud, water vapor and a hint of grass lingered at the tip of my nose, and in my ears there were noisy shouts - "New cooking cakes! Two for a penny!" "Do you want to hire a boat, sir? It's safe to go down the river to Yangzhou!"
